Apparatus and method for receiving a sheet from a first direction and feeding the sheet in a second direction

ABSTRACT

Apparatus and method for receiving a sheet from a first direction and transporting the sheet in a second direction. The apparatus comprising: a device for feeding the sheet in the second direction; a deck having an imput end for receiving the sheet from the first direction and an output end and including a lower deck plate and an upper deck plate pivotally mounted and vertically spaced above the lower deck plate. The apparatus further comprising a controller and a device for pivoting the upper deck plate between a closed position and an open position. The controller for causing the pivoting device to rotate the upper deck plate to the open position to receive the sheet from the first direction, causing the pivoting device to rotate the upper deck plate to the closed position after receiving the sheet and thereafter causing the feed device to feed the sheet in the second direction through the deck output end.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to sheet processing machines. Moreparticularly, this invention is directed to an apparatus and method forreceiving a sheet from a first direction and feeding the sheet in asecond direction.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Inserter systems capable of generating over 10,000 mail pieces per hourare well known in the art. Generally, inserter systems are used byorganizations such as banks, insurance companies and utility companiesfor producing a large volume of specific mailings where the contents ofeach mail item are directed to a particular addressee. Additionally,other organizations, such are direct mailers, use inserters forproducing a large volume of generic mailings where the contents of eachmail item are substantially identical for each addressee. Examples ofsuch inserter systems are the 8 Series™ and 9 Series™ inserter systemsavailable from Pitney Bowes, Inc., Stamford, Conn.

In many respects the typical inserter system resembles a manufacturingassembly line. Sheets and other raw materials (other sheets, enclosures,envelopes) enter the inserter system as inputs. Then, a plurality ofdifferent modules or workstations in the inserter system workcooperatively to process the sheets until a finished mail piece isproduced. The exact configuration of each inserter system depends uponthe needs of each particular customer or installation. Thus, the typicalinserter system may include such modules as: various web handlingmodules (slitters, cutters and bursters) for separating the continuousforms of a web into singular or discrete sheets, a sheet feeder modulefor feeding individual cut sheets, an accumulator module for assemblingthe sheets into a collation, a folder module for folding the collationinto a desired configuration (Z-fold, C-fold, half fold), aconveyor/staging module for transporting and queuing the collation, aplurality of enclosure feeder modules for assembling and adding a packetof enclosures to the collation, an insert station module for insertingthe collation into an envelope, and a control system to synchronize theoperation of the overall inserter system to assure that the collationsare properly assembled.

Devices are known which turn collations or sheets within a plane. Thesedevices are often utilized in inserter systems to change the orientationof the sheets (for example, landscape to portrait and vice versa) so asto facilitate further downstream processing. Another application forturning devices is in merging sheets from a first stream of sheets intoa second stream of sheets. Examples of turning devices utilized ininserter systems are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos.: 4,909,374, 5,180,154,5,180,159, 5,188,355 and 5,413,326; all of which are assigned to theassignee of the present invention. Such devices are commonly referred toas a right angle transport (RAT).

The RAT accepts a sheet from an upstream module and feeds the sheet to adownstream module. Typically, the RAT includes a first feed means forfeeding the sheet in a first direction, a second feed means for feedingthe sheet in a second direction and reorienting means. The reorientingmeans redirects the sheet from the first direction to the seconddirection by transferring the sheet from the first feed means to thesecond feed means. Although these prior art RATs generally work well,they are expensive to manufacture and take up a lot of space. Therefore,they are not well suited for all applications.

Accordingly, there is a need for an apparatus and method for receiving asheet from a first direction and feeding the sheet in a second directionwithout using a feed means in the first direction so as to reduce costand size. Additionally, the apparatus and method must be capable ofhandling single sheets, booklets, a plurality of folded sheets and othersheet configurations without operator adjustments so as to reduceoperating costs and setup time.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides an apparatus and method for receiving asheet from a first direction and feeding the sheet in a seconddirection. Conventionally, this invention may be used to reorient asheet from landscape to portrait or vice versa.

In accordance with the present invention, the apparatus comprises: meansfor feeding the sheet in the second direction; a deck having an inputend for receiving the sheet from the first direction and an output endand including a lower deck plate and an upper deck plate pivotallymounted and vertically spaced above the lower deck plate. The apparatusfurther comprising control means and means for pivoting the upper deckplate between a closed position and an open position such that thecontrol means causes: the pivoting means to rotate the upper deck plateto the open position to receive the sheet from the first direction; thepivoting means to rotate the upper deck plate to the closed positionafter receiving the sheet; and, thereafter, the feed means to feed thesheet in the second direction through the deck output end.

In accordance with the present invention, the method comprises thestep(s) of: receiving the sheet from the first direction into the inputend of the deck where the upper deck plate is in the open position;pivoting the upper deck plate from the open position to the closedposition; and thereafter, feeding the sheet in the second direction.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute apart of the specification, illustrate a presently preferred embodimentof the invention, and together with the general description given aboveand the detailed description of the preferred embodiment given below,serve to explain the principles of the invention. As shown throughoutthe drawings, like reference numerals designate like or correspondingparts.

FIG. 1 is a plan view of an apparatus for receiving a sheet from a firstdirection and transporting the sheet in a second direction in accordancewith the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along 2--2 as shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along 3--3 as shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram the apparatus in accordance with the presentinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to FIG. 1, an apparatus 100 apparatus having an input end 102for receiving a sheet 20 from a first direction, as indicated by arrow"A", and an output end 104 for transporting the sheet 20 in a seconddirection, as indicated by arrow "B", is shown. Generally, the sheet 20is fed into the apparatus 100 from the first direction by an upstreammodule (not shown) and fed from the apparatus 100 in the seconddirection to a downstream module (not shown). As used herein, the termsheet refers: a single sheet, a plurality of sheets, a booklet, a foldedplurality of sheets or other type of collation configuration.

Referring to FIGS. 1-3, the apparatus 100 includes a lower deck plate110, an upper deck plate 150, a sensor 210, a pair of stops 216, a pivotassembly 220 and a transport assembly 260 aligned to feed successivesheets 20 in the second direction. The lower deck plate 110 is fixablymounted to any suitable framework by conventional device while the upperdeck plate 150 is pivotally mounted to the lower deck plate 110. Thespace between the lower deck plate 110 and the upper deck plate 150defines a paper path. In the preferred embodiment, the lower deck plate110 and the upper deck plate 150 are made of sheet metal. However, othersuitable materials may be substituted.

The lower plate 110 includes a plurality of tabs 112 while the upperdeck plate 150 includes a plurality of flanges 152. The tabs 112 andflanges 152 are formed by bending up portions of the deck plates 110 and150, respectively. Shafts 190 are pushed through holes in tabs 112 andflanges 152 to pivotally mount the upper deck plate 150 to the lowerdeck plate 110. The shafts 190 may be secured in place by any suitabledevice such as an E-clip (not shown). Additionally, bearings may be usedin the holes to increase the stability of the upper deck plate 150 andto make for smoother rotation with less friction. Accordingly, the upperdeck plate 150 is free to rotate about shafts 190 between an openposition and a closed position. Gravity tends to keep the upper deckplate 150 in the closed position and spacers 196 located on the lowerdeck plate 110 maintain a proper gap between the lower deck plate 110and the upper deck plate 150. Thus, in the closed position the deckplates are substantially parallel. It is important to note that spacers196 are located outside of the paper path so as not to interfere withsheets 20 as they enter and exit from the apparatus 100.

The pivot assembly 220 selectively rotates the upper deck plate 150 fromthe closed position to the open position. It includes a rotary solenoid222 fixably mounted to the underside of the lower deck plate 110 by anL-shaped bracket 224. One end of arm 226 is fixably mounted to theactuator of solenoid 222 so that when the solenoid 222 is energized thearm 226 rotates along with the actuator. Rotatively mounted to the otherend of arm 226 is a roller 228. The solenoid 222, arm 226 and roller 228are arranged so that when the solenoid 222 is de-energized and the upperdeck plate 150 is in the closed position, the roller 228 is just barelytouching the underside of the lower deck plate 110. When the solenoid222 is energized the arm 226 rotates in a clock-wise direction as viewedin FIG. 3 and pivots the upper deck plate 150 to the open position asshown by dashed lines.

The sensor 210 is a conventional reflective type optical sensor andincludes a light emitter and a light detector for measuring the amountof reflected light. The sensor 210 is mounted to the lower deck plate110 and positioned to direct a beam of light into the paper path so asto detect the presence of the sheets 20. When a sheet 20 is presentlight is reflected back to the detector. On the other hand, when a sheet20 is not present no light is reflected back to the detector. Thus, bymonitoring the amount of light received by the detector, a determinationcan be made as to whether the sheet 20 is present or not. So that theupper deck plate 150 does not reflect light back to the detector when asheet 20 is not present and thus cause the detector to give a falsereading, the upper deck plate 150 includes a cut out 156 which lets thelight pass out from the apparatus 100. Therefore, the detector receivesmore light when a sheet 20 is present than when a sheet 20 is notpresent.

The stops 216 halt travel of the sheets 20 in the first direction andare slideably mounted to slots 114 in the lower deck plate 110.Therefore, the stops 216 are adjustable to accommodate different sizesheets 20. So that an operator has access to the stops 216 in order toreposition them along slots 114, the upper deck plate 150 contains cutouts 158. The stops 216 may be of any suitable design such as a typicalspring loaded screw and nut assembly.

After the stops 216 have halted travel of the sheets 20 in the firstdirection, the transport assembly 260 feeds the sheets 20 in the seconddirection. The transport assembly 260 includes a pusher finger transportassembly 270 and a take-away transport assembly 320. The pusher fingertransport assembly 270 includes a pair of endless belts 272 extendingaround respective sets of pulleys 274, 276 and 278. The belts 272 runbeneath the lower deck plate 110 and include pusher fingers 280 whichrise above and fall below the lower deck plate 110 as the belts 272rotate. So as not to interfere with the pusher fingers 280, the lowerdeck plate 110 contains cut outs 116 while the upper deck plate 150contains cut outs 160. As viewed in FIG. 2, the belts 272 rotate in aclock-wise direction.

The take-away transport assembly 320 includes endless belt 322 extendingaround pulleys 324 and 326 and normal force rollers 328 and 330. Theendless belt 322 extends above the lower deck plate 110 through cut out118. Pulleys 276 and 324 share a common shaft 250 while pulleys 278 and326 share a common shaft 252. The remaining pulleys and rollers aresupported on shafts 254, 256 and 258 accordingly. Shafts 250, 252, 254,256 and 258 are rotatively mounted to any suitable structure (not shown)in a conventional manner. Shaft 252 is operatively coupled to a drivesystem (not shown) for causing the shaft 252 to rotate and thussupplying the necessary input drive for pusher finger transport assembly270 and take-away transport assembly 320. Because the pulley 326 has alarger diameter than pulleys 278, the transport speed of take-awayassembly 320 is greater than that of pusher finger assembly 270.

Referring to FIG. 4, a control system 400 in communication with thesensor 210, the solenoid 222 and the transport assembly the transportassembly 260 is shown. The control system 400 may be of any suitablecombination of hardware and software so as to accomplish its function ofcontrolling the operation of apparatus 100. The sensor 210 provides anindication to the control system 400 concerning the presence or absenceof sheets 20. Based upon the status of the sensor 210, the controlsystem 400 selectively energizes the solenoid 222. Additionally, thecontrol system 400 controls the operation of the transport assembly 260.

With the major structural aspects of the present invention describedabove, the operational characteristics of the present invention will nowbe described with respect to FIGS. 1-4. To receive a sheet 20 from theupstream module (not shown) traveling in the first direction asindicated by arrow "A" the control system 400 energizes the solenoid 222so as to pivot the upper deck plate 150 to the open position. In theopen position, the input end of the upper deck plate 150 is spaced apartfurther from the corresponding input end of the lower deck plate 110than when the upper deck plate 150 is in the closed position. Therefore,the sheet 20 may more easily enter the paper path without jamming. Alsoto assist the sheet in entering the apparatus 100, the lower deck plate110 and the upper deck plate 150 include appropriate lead-in flanges 120and 162, respectively, at their input ends. Additionally, a furtherbenefit is achieved if the lower deck plate 110 is positioned slightlybelow the output elevation of the upstream module.

Since the upper deck plate 150 is in the open position and nothing is inthe paper path to obstruct the sheet 20, momentum causes the sheet 20 tocontinue to travel in the first direction. The cut outs 116, 160 and 156all include appropriate flanges (not shown) so as to reduce the risk ofa jam as the sheet 20 travels along the paper path between the lowerdeck plate 110 and the upper deck plate 150 in the first direction. Oncethe sensor 210 detects the lead edge of the sheet 20, the control system400 de-energizes the solenoid 222 to return the upper deck plate 150 tothe closed position. By this time, the sheet 20 has traveled well withinthe apparatus 100. The sheet 20 continues in the first direction untilit hits up against stops 216 which prevent any further travel in thefirst direction. By the time the sheet 20 hits the stops 216 its speedhas been greatly reduced due to friction. Therefore, bounce back islikely to be minimal. However, a brush (not shown) or other device maybe added to prevent excessive bounce back.

Once the sensor 210 detects the lead edge of the sheet 20, the controlsystem 400 waits a predetermined amount of time before advancing thepusher fingers 280. This ensures that the sheet 20 has reached to stops216 and is ready to be transported in the second direction. The controlsystem the advance of the pusher fingers 280 in a any conventionalmanner so that the pusher fingers operate in proper timed sequence withthe arrival of the sheet 20. It is important that the pusher fingers 280not be in the paper path as the sheet is traveling in the firstdirection. As the pusher fingers 280 rise above the lower deck plate110, they contact the sheet 20 and feed the sheet 20 in the seconddirection toward the take-away assembly 320. As the lead edge of sheet20 enters the nip between roller 328 and belt 322 the sheet 20 continuesto feed in the second direction but at increased speed. Therefore, thetake-away assembly 320 assumed control of the sheet 20 and advances thesheet ahead of the pusher fingers 280 before the pusher fingers fallbelow the lower deck plate 110. The take-away assembly 320 continues tofeed the sheet 20 out of the apparatus 100 and toward the downstreammodule (not shown).

Finally, at some point in time before a subsequent sheet 20 arrives, thecontrol system 400 energizes the solenoid 222 causing the upper deckplate 150 to pivot to the open position. Exactly when this occurs ismerely a matter of design choice. However, the upper deck plate 150should remain in the closed position at least until the sheet 20 hasentered the nip of the take-away assembly 320 so as to maintain propercontrol over the sheet 20.

It should now be apparent that apparatus 100 achieves a right angletransport without having a feed means in the first direction. Therefore,apparatus 100 takes advantage of the momentum supplied to the sheet 20from the upstream module. This reduces the cost of the present inventionover other systems.

It should also be apparent that the pivoting upper deck plate 150provide the advantage of being able to handle single sheets, booklets(large numbers of sheets) and other configuration without the need foroperator adjustment. When the sheet 20 is made up of a single sheet,then it travels easily between the deck plates to reach the stops 216.However, when the sheet 20 is made up of a large number of sheets thiswould not ordinarily occur because of friction. In this case, frictionis reduced on the sheets 20 by having the upper deck plate 150 in theopen position because the sheets 20 will not be rubbing against theupper deck plate 150 until it is returned to the closed position. Thisensures that the sheets 20 will have enough momentum to reach the stops216. Otherwise, if the upper deck plate 150 where fixed in the closedposition, then a large number of sheets or a heavy collection of sheetsmight not reach the stops 216 and a mis-alignment or jam would likelyoccur.

Another advantage is that the pivoting upper deck plate 150 clamps downon folded sheets 20 without creating unwanted drag or friction on thefolded sheets 20. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that foldedsheets 20 need to be controlled so that they do not spring back (expand)and begin to unfold. Expanded folded sheets often cause jams and aredifficult to keep properly aligned. Therefore, the upper deck plate 150in the closed position keeps folded sheets from springing back too farwithout applying excessive drag to the sheets.

Those skilled in the art will now appreciate that the present inventionallows a large number of sheets or a plurality of folded sheets to enterthe apparatus from a first direction without inducing too much drag onthe sheets by having a pivoting upper deck plate 150. Then, once thesheets have substantially completed their travel in the first direction,the upper deck plate 150 is returned to the closed position so that thesheets 20 are properly controlled and ready for feeding in the seconddirection.

Many features of the preferred embodiment represent design choicesselected to best exploit the inventive concept as implemented forproducing a ninety degree change of direction. However, with minormodifications the present invention may be adapted to achieve changes ofdirection of different angles. Additionally, the structural componentsof the present invention have many known substitutes. For example, theupper deck plate 150 may be pivotally mounted to some structural memberother than the lower deck plate 110. As another example, the sensor 210may be exchanged for a mechanical switch. However, this is not preferredbecause of the drag created on the sheet 20.

Most significantly, many substitutes for the pivot assembly 220 would bereadily apparent to those skilled in the art. For example, the rotarysolenoid may be replaced with a linear (push-pull) solenoid without onlyminor changes. In this embodiment, the arm would function as a see-sawwith a centrally located fixed pivot and the roller rotatively mountedto one end of the arm and the other end of the arm pivotally mounted tothe linear solenoid. An other example is a cam mechanism. In thisembodiment, the again behaves as a see-saw with a centrally locatedfixed pivot and the roller rotatively mounted to one end of the arm.However, the other end of the arm would have a follower rollerrotatively mounted to it and be spring biased so that the followerroller remains in contact with a cam. Those skilled in the art willeasily derive still other substitutions.

Since many modifications to the present invention will readily occur tothose skilled in the art, the invention in its broader aspects is notlimited to the specific details of the preferred embodiment.Accordingly, various modifications may be made without departing fromthe spirit of the general inventive concept as defined by the appendedclaims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. An apparatus for receiving a sheet from a firstdirection and transporting the sheet in a second direction, theapparatus comprising:means for feeding the sheet in the seconddirection; a deck having an input end for receiving the sheet from thefirst direction and an output end, the deck including a lower deck plateand an upper deck plate vertically spaced above the lower deck plate,the upper deck plate pivotally mounted to rotate between a closedposition where the lower deck plate and the upper deck plate aresubstantially parallel and an open position where the distance betweeninput ends of the lower deck plate and the upper deck plate is greaterthan that of the closed position; means for pivoting the upper deckplate between the closed position and the open position; and controlmeans in operative communication with the pivoting means for: causingthe pivoting means to pivot the upper deck plate to the open position toreceive the sheet from the first direction, causing the pivoting meansto pivot the upper deck plate to the closed position after receiving thesheet and, thereafter, causing the feed means to feed the sheet in thesecond direction through the deck output end.
 2. The apparatus of claim1 wherein the sheet travels along a paper path from the input end to theoutput end of the deck, and further comprising sensor means in operativecommunication with the control means located along the paper path fordetecting the presence of the sheet and wherein the control means causesthe pivoting means to rotate the upper deck plate from the open positionto the closed position after the sensor means detects the sheet.
 3. Theapparatus of claim 2 wherein the control means causes the feed means tofeed the sheet in the second direction through the deck output end afterthe sensor means detects the sheet.
 4. The apparatus of claim 3 furthercomprising stop means located along the paper path for halting travel ofthe sheet in the first direction and wherein the feed means feeds thesheet in the second direction after the sheet has halted travel in thefirst direction.
 5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein the pivoting meanscomprises:a rotary solenoid fixably mounted to the lower deck plate; anarm having a first end and a second end fixably mounted to the rotarysolenoid so as to rotate when the solenoid is energized; and a rollerrotatively mounted to the first end of the arm, wherein the controlsystem energizes the rotary solenoid causing the roller to bear againstthe upper deck plate and pivot the upper deck plate from the closedposition to the open position.
 6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein thesheet travels along a paper path from the input end to the output end ofthe deck, and further comprising stop means located along the paper pathfor halting travel of the sheet in the first direction and wherein thecontrol means causes the feed means to feed the sheet in the seconddirection through the deck output end after the sheet has halted travelin the first direction.
 7. The apparatus of claim 6 further comprisingsensor means in operative communication with the control means locatedalong the paper path for detecting the presence of the sheet and whereinthe control means causes the pivoting means to rotate the upper deckplate from the open position to the closed position after the sensormeans detects the sheet.
 8. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein thepivoting means comprises:a rotary solenoid fixably mounted to the lowerdeck plate; an arm having a first end and a second end fixably mountedto the rotary solenoid so as to rotate when the solenoid is energized;and a roller rotatively mounted to the first end of the arm, wherein thecontrol system energizes the rotary solenoid causing the roller to bearagainst the upper deck plate and pivot the upper deck plate from theclosed position to the open position.
 9. A method for receiving a sheetfrom a first direction and transporting the sheet in a second direction,the sheet traveling along a paper path through a deck having an inputend and including a lower deck plate and an upper deck plate verticallyspaced above the lower deck plate and pivotally mounted to rotatebetween a closed position where the lower deck plate and the upper deckplate are substantially parallel and an open position where the distancebetween input ends of the lower deck plate and the upper deck plate isgreater than that of the closed position, the method comprising thestep(s) of:(a) pivoting the upper deck plate from the closed position tothe open position; (b) receiving the sheet from the first direction intothe input end; (c) pivoting the upper deck plate from the open positionto the closed position; and (d) after step (c), feeding the sheet in thesecond direction.
 10. The method of claim 9 further comprising thestep(s) of:(e) detecting the presence of the sheet along the paper path,and thereafter implementing step (c).
 11. The method of claim 10 furthercomprising the step(s) of:(f) halting travel of the sheet in the firstdirection before implementing step (d).
 12. The method of claim 11wherein step (a) occurs before step (b) and step (e) occurs before step(f).
 13. The method of claim 12 wherein step (a) further comprises thestep(s) of:(e) energizing a rotary solenoid which is fixably mounted tothe lower deck plate so that a roller rotatively mounted to a first endof an arm fixably mounted at a second end to the rotary solenoid bearsagainst the upper deck plate and pivots the upper deck plate from theclosed position to the open position.
 14. The method of claim 9 furthercomprising the step(s) of:(e) halting travel of the sheet in the firstdirection before implementing step (d).
 15. The method of claim 14further comprising the step(s) of:(f) detecting the presence of thesheet along the paper path, and thereafter implementing step (c). 16.The method of claim 15 wherein step (a) occurs before step (b) and step(f) occurs before step (e).
 17. The method of claim 16 wherein step (a)further comprises the step(s) of:(e) energizing a rotary solenoid whichis fixably mounted to the lower deck plate so that a roller rotativelymounted to a first end of an arm fixably mounted at a second end to therotary solenoid bears against the upper deck plate and pivots the upperdeck plate from the closed position to the open position.
 18. The methodof claim 9 wherein step (a) further comprises the step(s) of:(e)energizing a rotary solenoid which is fixably mounted to the lower deckplate so that a roller rotatively mounted to a first end of an armfixably mounted at a second end to the rotary solenoid bears against theupper deck plate and pivots the upper deck plate from the closedposition to the open position.